Meant To Be
by serenadreams
Summary: My heart broke as I realized what he was saying; he was telling me he would forgive me for choosing Stefan's life over his. I found myself shaking my head slowly. I couldn't let him die.  Set after 2.13 'Daddy Issues'  DELENA!
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

* * *

I watched as Damon poured himself yet another glass of scotch. He sat down opposite Stefan and I and watched us indifferently. I felt uncomfortable sitting next to Stefan like that; it made me feel as if we were ganging up on Damon. I wondered if that had been Stefan's intention to begin with. I resisted the urge to roll my eyes.

I loved Stefan but he was driving me crazy. He was constantly telling me to keep my distance form Damon, it was purely out of jealousy and it was selfish. I had made it very clear that I had no intention of staying away from him; Damon had sort of become my best friend, the only person I was absolutely positive I could count on.

I could see that his walls were up as he watched us together. I knew that it hurt him that I was with Stefan, and I didn't like to exploit our relationship in front of him, Stefan seemed to be thinking the exact opposite. He wrapped his arm around me and kissed my cheek. I gently but firmly pushed him off and put a little more distance between us on the sofa. I saw Damon take another sip of his drink to hide his smirk.

We were here to discuss John's return to town. Damon and I agreed that he was nothing but trouble, but Stefan seemed to think that he wanted to help me. Naive bunny eating vampire, I thought to myself.

"So what to do about daddy?" Damon asked sarcastically.

Stefan glared at him disapprovingly. I snickered.

"He's here to help us Damon." Stefan said with a sigh.

"We don't know that Stefan, he's done nothing to prove that we can trust him." I chimed in.

Stefan looked exasperated and was about to say something when there was a resounding crash from the kitchen. I nearly jumped out of my seat and, frowning, Damon jumped up and ran towards the noise. Stefan quickly followed him and I trailed behind, inhibited by my human speed.

"Damon?" I called. "Stefan? What's going on?"

I entered the kitchen and froze, a group of men stood around Stefan and Damon who lay unconscious on the floor. There were vervain syringes next to them and I realized with a sinking feeling that they had been drugged. I felt sick as I looked at their bodies; I prayed they would be all right.

Jules stepped out from behind one of the men and walked towards me.

"So you are the Petrova doppelganger." She said calmly.

I took a step away from her, understanding that all the men were also werewolves. Damon began to regain consciousness but not his strength; he looked up to see Jules closing in on me. He growled menacingly and struggled to get up. One of the wolves grabbed a stake and plunged it into his leg. Damon cried out in pain and my heart broke at the sound.

"What do you want with me?" I asked shakily.

"We don't want anything with you…yet. We just came for the vampires." Her voice was cold and cruel and my heart began to beat faster in fear.

"Please don't hurt them." I whispered.

Jules laughed and the others joined in with her.

"They'll kill you eventually, one of them will lose control, rip your pretty little neck and suck you dry." She said; she looked at me as if contemplating what to with me.

I shook my head. Stefan and Damon would never hurt me; I knew that.

"You're wrong." I said, I tried to sound firm but my voice wavered, giving me away.

She rolled her eyes.

"They're vampires Elena. They kill and they destroy and then they repeat."

I was shaking my head before she had even finished. How could she be so naive to think that all vampires were the same? Stupid werewolf.

"Stefan and Damon would never hurt me." I spat out.

"So how dos this work anyway, do they share you?" She asked curiously.

I felt sick, I couldn't bring myself to answer her. A small smile crept onto her lips.

"I have an idea." She looked at the man who was standing next to her and whispered something in his ear, he laughed cruelly.

"Why not, this could be amusing." He said.

Damon had obviously heard what had been whispered, because he stopped struggling and layback on the floor closing his eyes. I realized in horror that he was accepting, accepting that he was going to die. No, no, no I frantically muttered in my head.

"So Elena, here's the deal. You get to save one of them, and then you get to watch while we kill the other." Jules looked like she was thoroughly enjoying herself.

My heart froze in my chest at her words. Now I understood why Damon had given up, he was accepting the fact that I would save Stefan and let them kill him right in front of me. I felt tears trickle down my face at that thought.

"Please don't make me do this." I whispered.

"Choose one, or I kill them both." Jules said menacingly.

My chest heaved with unshed tears as I looked at the brothers on the ground. Stefan still hadn't regained consciousness and Damon kept his eyes firmly closed. My first thought was that of course I would choose Stefan; he was my boyfriend. I loved him. But when I looked at Damon, I physically hurt at the thought of him not being here anymore, of him being dead. Pain ripped through my chest and I grasped the counter for support.

The thought of Stefan dying hurt too, it filled me with sadness and regret but not the physical ache I felt when I thought of Damon. I was so confused; did I love the elder Salvatore? I knew I cared about him, more than I liked to admit, but I had never considered that I might actually love him more than _Stefan_. It was true that Damon and I seemed to get along better but Stefan was… Stefan. Could I just let him die? I started to cry in earnest.

"Please." I begged. Damon shifted slightly and I knew that he was mentally preparing himself.

He opened his eyes and looked at me.

"Elena." He said softly.

I looked at him and he smiled reassuringly.

"It's ok, do it, I understand." He whispered.

My heart broke as I realized what he was saying; he was asking me to save Stefan, telling me he didn't mind. He was telling me to let them kill him. I found myself shaking my head slowly, holding his gaze; his beautiful blue eyes were full of sadness.

Jules raised her eyebrows and nodded at the man closest to Damon. He shot Damon twice in the stomach with a gun loaded with wooden bullets. Damon yelled and groaned in pain.

"No!" I cried out.

The man looked at me.

"Make your decision cupcake, I'm getting bored."

I didn't say anything, my mind desperately trying to understand what was happening.

Jules sighed.

"Do it." She said.

The man grabbed a stake out of his pocked and held it over Damon's chest. This was it, the final moments. Damon was going to die. I couldn't let that happen, I felt an undeniable pull and suddenly understood.

I threw myself at Damon and landed hard on his chest just as the man brought the stake down. Damon opened his eyes in surprise at the sudden weight, and gasped in horror as he saw the blood soaking the back of my shirt.

"Elena." He yelled. I turned slightly to meet his frantic eyes.

"I couldn't let them do it Damon." I whispered.

He looked at me in complete shock and confusion, the wolves looked on in surprise.

"You stupid girl." Damon said, his hand reaching around me to see the extent of my wound. He was relieved to find it very shallow, the wolf had stopped as soon as he saw me. It didn't mean it didn't hurt like hell though. "Thank God." He muttered.

"Well looks like she's made her decision." Jules said.

I buried my face into Damon's chest as someone plunged a stake into Stefan's heart. Damon stared in horror.

"Elena…why?"

I just shook my head and sobbed for Stefan's loss. I had loved him, I really had but at that crucial moment my heart had known whom I had to keep alive at all costs. Damon, it was like we were connected, my love for Stefan, which had been diminishing over the last few weeks, anyway, had suddenly looked weak in comparison to the pull I felt to Damon. My mind didn't understand my decision, but my heart did. for once in my life I had decided to follow my heart.

"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry." I moaned.

Damon stroked my hair softly.

"What for?" he asked, even more confused.

"He's your brother, I know you love him."

Damon nodded.

"Yeah, but so do you…"

I didn't reply, we had a lot to discuss but now wasn't the time. I looked around to see that the wolves had left. I wondered why they had let me save one of them, I wondered why they had let me live, I didn't understand. I was so confused, how had everything gone so wrong in the space of twenty minutes?


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

* * *

I sat in the boarding house sitting room with my head in my hands; Damon was downstairs getting blood. Stefan was dead; it was like my brain couldn't quite compute that knowledge, I would never see his brown eyes twinkle at me, never feel his arms around me, he was gone, really gone.

I thought of what it would feel like if I were crying over Damon right now, while Stefan was just in the other room. Why did that hurt more?

I rubbed my temples; my life was like a constant episode of The Days Of Our Lives. Why couldn't I just have a normal family, a normal best friend and a normal boyfriend? Not that I would trade any of the people in my life for anything but I sometimes just wished that I didn't have to worry about people dying and vampires and werewolves. I was seventeen; sometimes it all got so crazy I could hardly bare it.

The doorbell rang and I jumped, startled by the ordinary sound. I got up and walked into the hall, Damon appeared in front of me.

"Get behind me." He whispered.

Keeping one arm stretched behind him protectively, he opened the door. I thought he was being a little overprotective but I understood why. He didn't want to take any risks, he had lost one person he cared about tonight, and he didn't want to lose another. I felt the same way.

Alaric was standing on the doorstep; he took in Damon's defensive stance in front of me and frowned.

"What's going on?" He asked.

Damon sighed and relaxed. He walked back into the sitting room, gesturing with his head for the teacher to follow. Alaric entered and I closed the door behind him.

Ric glanced between Damon and I suspiciously.

"Where's Stefan?" He asked.

I looked down and Damon kept his face expressionless.

"In the kitchen." He said.

Alaric turned and approached the kitchen cautiously; he opened the door and gasped in shock at what he saw. He whirled around stared at Damon, his eyes flicked to me once and then focused back on him.

"What did you do?" He asked.

Damon rolled his eyes and I scowled.

Alaric came closer, zeroing in on Damon, I was suddenly worried that he might do something stupid and end up staking Damon. I quickly moved between them, my back pressed against Damon's chest. His hands moved to grip my upper arms, ready to move me out of the way.

"It wasn't him." I said stiffly.

Alaric sighed.

"I'm sorry Damon, I guess it's just too heavily ingrained, I see a dead person I think of you." He shrugged.

Damon rolled his eyes.

"Well this time, I'm innocent." He said coldly.

He maneuvered me to the side.

"You need to stop doing that." He whispered.

I was confused.

"Doing what?"

"Using your body as the worlds' weakest shield. I'm a vampire Elena, I can take care of myself."

I glared up at him.

"I lost one of you tonight. I am _not _going to lose two."

"Oh please, Ric wasn't going to hurt me, we're buddies." He said, with a ghost of his trademark smirk.

Alaric gave me an unreadable look and I turned away, feeling uncomfortable under his scrutiny.

"Does someone want to tell me what the hell happened here?" He said.

Damon sighed, sat down and rubbed his head.

"Jules and her little wolf pack…" Damon started, he glanced up at me.

"They broke in, killed him before I could stop them." He quickly lied.

I turned away from both of them and walked out. I appreciated Damon not telling Alaric about my decision, he wouldn't understand, I still didn't understand. But I couldn't be around them right now, I couldn't listen to them talking about death, planning revenge… whatever it is they needed to do. I just wanted to pretend to be normal.

"Is she OK?"I heard Alaric ask.

"The day I understand what goes on in Elena Gilbert's head will be the day I wear a cape and turn into a bat." Damon replied.

I rolled my eyes and walked up the stairs out of earshot. I paused outside Stefan's door and peaked inside. I had lots of memories in that room, some good and some bad, like the night I found out about my resemblance to Katherine. I closed the door and turned down the hallway. I looked into the next bedroom I reached and smiled at what I saw. It was a beautiful spare room, painted a royal blue with ornate gold gilding.

There was a large four-poster bed in the center; it had blue covers and a gorgeous, carved headboard. I padded over to it and peeled back the bedclothes; I crawled inside and curled up, letting sleep claim me.

* * *

I woke a few hours later to find someone shaking me. I opened my eyes to see Damon leaning over me.

"I'm going out for a bit. There's some stuff I need to do…we've come up with an official story for Stefan's death. As his guardian there's a whole lot of paperwork I have to fill out."

I nodded, looking at Damon carefully, he looked reserved, his walls were up; he was blocking out his emotions. I frowned, he couldn't withdraw from me now; I needed him.

"You can stay here if you want, or I can take you home." He continued.

I sighed.

"I should go home, Jenna's going to be wondering where I am." I murmured.

Damon nodded and turned to leave.

"Get your stuff, I'll drive you." He said as he walked out.

* * *

Damon stopped the car in front of my house and reached across my lap to open the door. I climbed out and hesitated, he glanced at me.

"I'll come by, later." He said quietly

I nodded and shut the door. He had driven away before I reached the porch.

I realized that tears had begun to creep down my face. I took a shuddering breath and searched my bag for my keys, when I couldn't find them I gave up and rang the doorbell. Jenna answered; she took in my tearstained face and pulled me into a hug.

I wrapped my arms around her and cried, letting it all out; she stroked my hair and murmured soothingly. Eventually I managed to pull myself together and stepped back, giving her an apologetic smile.

She led me into the sitting room and sat me down on the couch.

"Honey, what happened?" She asked gently.

"Stefan, he… he died." I whispered. My voice broke, saying it out loud made it even more real. I swallowed thickly.

"What?" She gasped.

I nodded slowly and she frowned, not understanding.

"What do you mean he died, what happened?"

I looked down, realizing that Damon hadn't told me what the official story was.

"I…I'm not sure, Damon's going to come by later and explain everything." I was glad I hadn't completely lied; I was getting better at these half-truths.

"Oh my god, Elena." She whispered. She wrapped her arm around me and I smiled at the motherly gesture.

"Aunt Jenna, have you seen my phone?" Jeremy called. He walked in and stopped when he saw our devastated faces.

"What happened?" He asked, bracing himself for the worst.

It was Jenna who answered. I was grateful, I wasn't sure I could say it again.

"It's Stefan." She said quietly.

Jeremy frowned.

"Yeah, what about him?"

"He passed away, honey," Jenna whispered.

Jeremy stared at her then glanced at me.

"What do you mean…what happened?"

I got up from the couch and began to walk towards the stairs.

"Talk to Damon, he has answers." I said.

Jeremy looked at me in confusion. Finally he said.

"Elena…Are you alright?"

I nodded.

"Surprisingly… yeah. I'm ok." I answered as I left the room.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

* * *

I lay on my bed with my diary open, the pages were blank; I didn't know where to start. Jenna's voice interrupted my thoughts.

"Elena, Damon's here." She called.

I frowned at how much better that made me feel. I jumped up and ran downstairs. Damon was sitting on the couch, I resisted the urge to go up to him and throw my arms around his neck, I missed the feeling of comfort and safety his embrace gave me, but I moved to sit opposite him, next to Jenna and Jeremy.

Damon noticed my red eyes and sighed.

"Come here." He said quietly, as if reading my mind.

He opened his arms and I gratefully curled up against him, breathing in his familiar scent.

Jenna raised her eyebrows.

"What's going on, Damon?" Jeremy asked.

I listened to the conversation from my safe position on the couch.

"There was a fire in our garage. Stefan was working on his car and a wire fused, it ignited the gas and…" Damon broke off. "It's been ruled an accident."

Jenna took in a shaky breath.

"Oh my god." She whispered.

I had to admit it was a pretty good cover, no autopsy and no investigation into cause of death.

"Elena, weren't you at the boarding house?" Jeremy asked.

I frowned, crap I hadn't thought of that.

"Elena and I were out." Damon said quickly.

"Wait…together?" Jenna asked, her eyes narrowing as she analyzed our position on the couch.

I spoke for the first time.

"Are we really going to have this conversation right now?" I asked, I wasn't in the mood for a lecture.

She sighed and shook her head, giving me a small smile.

"So what's going to happen now?" Jeremy asked.

"The funeral is next week, there's still a lot to be arranged." Damon said.

"If there's anything we can do…" Jenna offered.

Damon nodded.

"Thank you."

He shifted and pushed me away slightly.

"I'm sorry, I have to get going."

I looked at him in alarm and Jeremy shot him a questioning look. I knew he didn't buy the story.

Damon stood up and looked at me carefully.

"Go get some rest Elena." He said.

I nodded, realizing that he was asking me to meet him upstairs. He said goodbye to Jenna and let himself out.

Jenna was crying quietly. Jeremy rubbed her awkwardly on the back before excusing himself.

"You should call Alaric." I said.

Jenna nodded.

"I'm sorry sweetie, I shouldn't be the one crying, but it's just so awful, I mean what if you had been with him…" She trailed off.

I smiled reassuringly.

"I'm fine." I said. "Just really tired, I think I could sleep for a week."

Jenna hugged me quickly.

"Got to bed Elena, I'll call Ric." She said gently.

I smiled gratefully and ran upstairs

* * *

Damon and Jeremy stood in my room having a hushed argument. I walked in and flopped down on the bed.

"But I don't understand, why would they kill Stefan and leave you two alive?" Jeremy asked.

Damon shrugged.

"They were going to kill me as well, but Elena pleaded on my behalf." He said slightly sarcastically.

I sighed; Jeremy was _not _going to take this well. But we didn't lie to each other anymore, so I had to tell him.

"They made me to choose."

Damon didn't look at me; he was staring absently out the window.

"What do you mean choose?" Jeremy stared at me, confused.

"Between Stefan and Damon." I paused. "They were going to kill them and I begged them not to. So they said that I could save one." I said the words matter-of-factly, as though talking about the weather.

"And you chose Damon?" Jeremy yelled.

"I don't get it either, kid." Damon said quietly, still not looking at me.

"Look, I care about both of them, but Damon was awake and Stefan wasn't; he didn't suffer." I had thought of the excuse seconds ago, and prayed that it would hold up.

"So you let your boyfriend die to save his brother, because he was awake?" Jeremy asked skeptically.

I sighed.

"I should never have had to make that decision. But at least Stefan didn't know what was happening." I defended myself.

"Whatever you need to tell yourself Elena… Bonnie's going to have a fit when she finds out." Jeremy said.

I rolled my eyes.

"Bonnie's little prejudices are the last of my worries right now." I said. If my best friend couldn't accept my decisions then maybe our friendship wasn't as strong as I had thought.

Jeremy frowned, opened his mouth to argue and then glanced at Damon.

"Whatever. I'm going to go, give you guys a minute." He left the room and closed the door behind him.

Damon didn't turn to face me.

"Damon?" I said.

I could feel him putting distance between us and it scared me.

"Damon please."

He looked at me.

"What is it Elena?"

"Don't do this." I whispered.

He raised an eyebrow.

"Do what exactly?" He asked.

"Push me away." I took a deep breath. "Look I'm sorry, you have every right to blame me for his death, but I don't want to lose you too." My voice was barely audible.

He was in front of me in a second, his hand cupping my face.

"Elena." He murmured, his eyes unfathomable. "I don't blame you for what happened, how could I? You saved my life."

"Then what is it? Why are you shutting me out?" I felt tears prickling behind my eyes and blinked rapidly.

Damon sighed and looked away.

"I just think it's for the best."

I glared at him.

"Why?" I asked angrily.

He took in a deep breath and let it out slowly.

"You're going to resent me Elena. You loved Stefan, and in a few days, when the reality of what's happened hits you, you're going to hate me." He fixed me with a cold look. "I'm just making it easier for you."

I walked towards him.

"I could never hate you Damon." I said. "I don't know why I did what I did, but something made me make that decision, and… I don't regret it."

He stared at me.

"I don't understand." He said quietly.

"Neither do I." I answered.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter four**

* * *

"So where does that leave us?" Damon asked quietly.

I sighed and looked down.

"I don't know Damon, but I know that I need you."

I fingered the vervain necklace around my neck.

"So please don't shut me out." I looked into his eyes. "Please."

His face was unreadable but eventually he nodded.

"I'm not going anywhere." He said softly.

I smiled and he lent towards me and gently kissed the top of my head.

"Get some sleep Elena."

And then, with a gust of wind, he was gone. I sighed and changed into my pajamas, I could feel the events of the past few hours creeping up on me and I was exhausted. I climbed into bed and burrowed underneath the covers, falling quickly to sleep.

_Stefan stalked towards me, the veins beneath his eyes distorting his face. _

_"Katherine, you little whore." His voice was cruel._

_"No, I'm not Katherine. Stefan it's me, I'm Elena." I held my hands out before me, trying to get him to understand. _

_"That's not going to work Kat, you tried it before… remember?"_

_He grabbed me by the neck and pushed me hard against the wall._

_"Katherine, Katherine, Katherine, Katherine." He chanted, tauntingly._

_Suddenly, he was gone and Damon was in his place, his body pressed against mine, his hands wrapped around my throat. He looked down at me in surprise and quickly dropped his hold. _

_"Elena, oh my god." He looked horrified to discover himself in such a threatening position over me, he stepped back._

_"Are you ok?" He asked gently._

_"It will always be Stefan." I whispered._

_Damon's face was heartbroken and lost… he looked so human_.

_Stefan walked in slowly._

_"It will always be Katherine."_

_My doppelganger entered the room._

_"It'll always be Stefan." She said coldly._

_"It'll never be me." Damon whispered. _

I opened my eyes and stared around at my darkened room. I rubbed my neck, watching Damon's face crumple when I had said those destructive words all those months ago. The night Damon had almost killed Jeremy, the night Katherine and I broke his heart.

His bright blue eyes had been so full of pain, just like in my dream. Only the thing was, now I was sure that it wouldn't always be Stefan, I mean… he was gone. But that wasn't the reason. Damon and I… we had something, a connection that I had never had with Stefan.

In the face of death, given a cruel ultimatum, I had chosen to protect that connection over someone who I thought I loved.

I rolled over, trying to forget the disturbing dream. I pushed the image of Damon's devastated face out of my mind, swearing that I would _never _hurt him again.

* * *

I was woken the next morning, by a knocking on my bedroom door.

"Elena? Honey, you awake?" Jenna called.

Sat up groggily.

"I'm up." I said.

She opened the door and came to sit on my bed.

"How're you doing?" She asked gently.

I sighed, I hated this part; all the pity, the understanding looks. It was like after my parents' accident.

I gave her a forced smile.

"I'm fine, Jenna. Please don't worry about me." I said and she nodded, she understood that I didn't want any fussing.

"You can give school a miss today."

"No, I'll go… I need things to be normal."

She nodded, gave me another quick smile and left the room.

I quickly got ready and traipsed downstairs, ready to face what was surely going to be an exhausting day.

* * *

"But I just can't believe it… you must be devastated." Caroline was babbling non-stop.

As much as I loved her, Caroline was not known for her tact.

Bonnie, Caroline and I were in English; everyone had been giving me sympathetic looks all morning and it was wearing me down.

I let my hair fall over my eyes and tried to concentrate on the book in front of me. As soon as the bell went I shoved my books into my bag and jumped up, I was about to leave when our teacher Mr. Hawthorne called me back. I turned slowly and he gestured for me to sit back down.

"I just wanted to see how you were doing, I know that you and Stefan Salvatore were… intimate." He said gently.

I nodded and looked away.

"I'm ok, thanks." I said quickly.

He sighed.

"The school has arranged for you to meet with a councilor. After losing your parents so recently, we don't want this to bring up all those old feelings."

I stared at him; he couldn't be serious.

"No, I'm really fine." I replied firmly.

"Look, I know this is hard Elena, but we really think you could benefit from some grief counseling. "

I shook my head and stood up quickly and without talking, walked out. I lent against a wall in the corridor, breathing deeply. I couldn't do this; I couldn't be this girl again.

I glanced around me and hurried for the exit. There were still another couple of hours of school left but I had to get out of there. I reached my car and collapsed into the drivers seat, resting my head against the steering wheel. I didn't want to go home, I wanted to go somewhere where people didn't know me, where they didn't feel sorry for me. I started the car and headed for the highway and straight out of Mystic Falls.

I needed to get away from myself, i wanted to do something reckless. Something most teenagers do all the time, I wanted to not care what anyone else thought and just think of me for a few hours.

By the time I had gotten to the nearest city it was nearly five and the sky was beginning to darken. I wasn't sure what to do now that I was here but I parked the car and wondered around for a while, just breathing in the relief of not knowing anyone.

I had a coffee in a Starbucks and got talking to a blonde girl who said that she was in college in the city. She was nice; bubbly and friendly, she told me that she was going to a party later and asked if I wanted to join.

I hesitated at first but eventually agreed, thinking that it might be exactly what I needed. A chance to be the old me, the person I was before any of this happened, before my parents died, before I met Stefan, before I found out about vampires. I could barely remember who that girl was, but it would be fun to meet her again.

Three hours later I was at a house, surrounded by drunken college kids. Music was blaring and booze was being handed out like candy.

My new friend whose name I found out was Stacy, led me to a group of guys doing shots, she pulled me down next to them and they handed us a couple of overflowing glasses. I sighed, I was in a strangers' house, miles from home… I might as well have fun.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

As it was nearing midnight I began to feel sick, I vaguely wondered how I was going to get myself home. Stacy tripped over and we both started laughing hysterically, we had drunk way too much and everything seemed completely comical. A bunch of boys jeered at us and gave us suggestive looks. I rolled my eyes and flopped down on a couch. Stacy sat next to me and began to laugh for no apparent reason.

"I am so wasted!" She giggled.

I laughed with her but it didn't feel right, this was the Elena who had caused her parents to crash their car; this was the Elena who had only thought about herself. I wasn't this girl anymore.

I pushed those thoughts from my head, I was here and this was a one off. I would feel like crap in the morning, I should enjoy the buzz while it lasted.

My phone rang just as I reached for a beer.

Stacy pulled it out of my bag and gawked in admiration as Damon's picture flashed onto the screen.

"Who is that?" She gasped.

I cursed inwardly, and glanced at my watch; it was late, I realized foggily that Damon must be worried.

I reached for the phone and answered, trying to clear my head.

"Hey Damon!" I said, as normally as I could manage.

"Elena? Where are you?" His voice was controlled but I could easily recognize the thinly veiled concern.

"I'm not sure." I said, my voice slurring slightly. I cleared my throat and blinked rapidly, trying to sober up.

"What? Jeremy called me; you're not at home or with Caroline or Bonnie. Where the hell did you go?" He sounded slightly angry now, I could understand that but it made my head ache.

I frowned and tried to remember where exactly I was, I was annoyed to discover that I couldn't coherently tell him my location.

"Tell him how gorgeous he is!" A giggling Stacy chimed in.

"Who was that?" Damon asked.

I stifled a laugh at Stacy's lust filled expression.

"My new friend." I said. "She thinks you're the hottest guy she's ever seen… Not that she's even seen you. She'd probably pass out if you did that eye thing on her!" I said, voicing my own musings.

There was a pause.

"Are you drunk?" He asked.

"No." I said a bit too quickly, but it came out slurred and I winced at how completely unconvincing I sounded.

"Elena you know I am all for you having fun, god knows you need it but cutting school and disappearing without telling anyone where you are is not the way to go about it."

I scowled.

"I can do whatever I want, you're not the boss of me." I said childishly.

I could hear Damon sighing.

"I'm not trying to boss you around Elena. I'm trying to keep you safe, and you're making bloody difficult."

That sobered me slightly.

"Sorry." I mumbled.

He paused.

"Does your friend know where you are?" He asked.

I looked at Stacy.

"Do you know where we are exactly?" I asked.

She looked confused but nodded.

"Tell him." I said handing her my phone.

It took her a minute to get over her coos and gasps of how hot he was before she finally managed to tell Damon where I was. She handed the phone back to me. And I dropped it in my bag.

"Is he your boyfriend?" She asked with blatant jealousy.

I shook my head.

"It's complicated." I said, not really wanting t get into it.

"No its not. Either you're having sex with him or not." She said bluntly.

I blushed.

"No, I'm not having sex with him." I chuckled.

"Well, all the more for me." She said with a mischievous smile.

I was surprised at how possessive I felt at that comment. I frowned and closed my eyes; the room was spinning uncomfortably.

"I need some air." I said groggily.

I unsteadily got to my feet and stumbled out into the garden. I tripped and flew headlong onto some concrete, scraping my hands and cutting my head. I rolled over and, ignoring the pain lay flat on my back staring up at the starry sky.

I wasn't sure why I had come here tonight, it wasn't like me to go to a party with total strangers and get drunk, but I had needed to be someone else for a few hours; someone who didn't have to worry about life or death situations.

My head was pounding, I closed my eyes and let sleep claim me.

* * *

"Elena, Elena!" Someone was shaking me.

I groaned and opened my eyes. Damon's bright blue orbs were boring into mine.

"Hello Damon..." I mumbled.

He gave me a small smile and then pushed my hair out of my face, examining the scrape on my forehead. He frowned then sighed when he noticed the grazes on my palms.

"You fell?" He asked.

The question would have sounded stupid to anyone else but I understood. He was making sure that I had been the cause of my injuries and no one else, with me you never know.

I nodded.

He looked at me for a moment, his eyes unfathomable.

"Come on." He said, pulling me into his arms and lifting me up easily.

"You're pretty." I said suddenly.

I knew that the alcohol was talking but I couldn't stop it.

Damon looked surprised and indignant.

"I assure you, dear Elena, I am not pretty. Devilishly handsome; yes, pretty; no."

"You have pretty eyes." I answered back, they twinkled in amusement and sparkled beautifully as if proving my point.

"Let's get you home, Boozy." He said and walked into the house.

"Where's your purse?" He asked.

I shrugged; I honestly had no idea.

He rolled his eyes and set me down on a couch. He hunted around for a moment before finding it underneath a drinks table.

My eyes had drifted closed again and Damon scooped me back up into his arms.

I lent my head against his chest and was annoyed at the loss of contact when he deposited me in the passenger seat of his car. I clung onto his hand and he gave me a wry smile. He kissed my hand softly and disengaged himself from my grasp. My eyes were still closed and I wondered briefly if I had imagined it. I said something incoherent and fell back to sleep.

* * *

A yell woke me; I opened my eyes and gazed fuzzily around. I could feel Damon's strong arms around me; he was carrying me, my head resting against his shoulder.

"What did you do to her?" Someone yelled.

I focused on the voice and saw Bonnie, her face red with anger.

We were outside my house, Bonnie ran down the porch steps.

"Bonnie…" I mumbled.

She notices the dried blood on my forehead.

"You son of a bitch." She spat angrily.

She stared at Damon coldly and suddenly his arms tensed around me, I twisted around to look at him, his face was scrunched up in pain. I could feel the tremors of agony passing through him and yet he didn't let me go, I could see him concentrating on not falling to the floor.

"Stop it!" I screamed at Bonnie.

She ignored me and focused harder, Damon staggered back a step and I wrapped my arms around his neck, cradling his head, trying in vain to ease his torment.

"Bonnie, stop." I yelled again, desperately.

There was a blur of movement and suddenly Bonnie was on the floor with Caroline on top of her, Damon relaxed instantly and groaned.

I kissed his neck.

"Are you ok?" I whispered.

He nodded quietly and gently set me on my feet, keeping his arms firmly around my waist. I turned to face Bonnie who was glaring at Caroline in annoyance.

"What is your problem Caroline?" She spat. "He hurt Elena."

Carline rolled her eyes.

"Elena is the one person in the entire world who Damon would never hurt." She said sounding exasperated. "You need to get over your stupid prejudices and open your eyes."

Damon watched them emotionlessly.

Caroline got up and moved away from the witch who stood up shakily, glaring at Damon. She took a step forward but I shifted myself in front of him.

"Hurt him again and I won't speak to you for the rest of my life." I said coldly.

She stared at me, confused.

"Elena, he…" She began.

"He what Bonnie? Drove miles in the middle of the night to pick me up from some party? Wow, how will I ever forgive him?" I said sarcastically.

Bonnie looked surprised.

"But I thought…"

"That I got her drunk banged her up a bit and took a bite out of her." Damon finished for her, his voice cold.

I shook my head at my former best friend.

"When has Damon _ever _physically hurt me?"

Bonnie glared at me.

"How about that night at that tomb when he forced you to drink his blood and threatened to kill you." She said icily.

I stared her down.

"Threatened to turn me, not kill me." I said.

"Only because…"

"Because I wanted to keep her forever." Damon cut in. "I couldn't conceive of killing Elena, even when I was out of control. Why do you think I snapped Jeremy's neck that night?"

I turned to look at him; he had never spoken about that night.

Caroline rolled her eyes at Bonnie.

"You need to stop being so completely self centered and notice what's going on around you." She said coldly before turning and walking up the porch steps and into the house.

Bonnie looked at me, unsure of what to say. Finally she sighed and said.

"I get that Damon cares about you, I can see that he isn't a threat to you and I'm sorry that I thought he was. But he is to other people and I can't live with that Elena."

I held her gaze.

"Damon isn't the only vampire I know. If _any _harm comes to him at your hands, I will make sure you pay." I said calmly.

I knew I was probably overreacting but I couldn't even think about Damon being seriously hurt, he was the one solid thing in my life at the moment. He was my constant, I relied on him and trusted him with everything, over the past few days I had come to realize how much I needed him. I wasn't going to let Bonnie take him away from me, even if it meant the end of our friendship.


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

Bonnie stared at me in shock.

"I think you should leave." I said coldly.

She gave me one last look, her eyes hardening as they focused on Damon's arms wrapped protectively around my middle. She turned on her heel and left, my eyes boring into her back.

When she was gone Caroline ran and threw her arms around me. I stumbled back and Damon held us both up, chuckling slightly.

"I was worried about you." Caroline said, pulling back to look at me.

"Sorry, I just… needed a break I guess." I said.

She gave me an understanding look.

"Let's take this inside." Damon interrupted.

He wrapped his arm around my waist and helped me into the house, I probably could have managed on my own but I didn't object.

He sat me down on the sofa and disappeared, leaving me with Caroline.

Jeremy was relieved and irritated when he saw me; he joined Caroline and me with a glare.

"Do you have any idea how worried I was?" He asked.

I smiled at him.

"Sorry mom." I said teasingly. He rolled his eyes.

"Where's Jenna?" I asked.

"Out."

Damon reappeared holding a warm flannel and band-aids. He sat down next to me and I let him clean and dress the wound on my head.

I wondered vaguely how he knew where we kept everything in this house.

"So where did you go?" Caroline asked.

I cringed slightly, now that the effects of the alcohol had worn off I was feeling acutely embarrassed about my bout of teenage rebellion.

Damon laughed.

"She got drunk with a bunch of sorority girls." He said, finding great amusement in the situation now that he knew I wasn't seriously hurt.

I flushed and Caroline stared at me, open-mouthed.

"Elena, I didn't know you had it in you!" She said teasingly.

"Yes you did." I shot back, raising an eyebrow.

Caroline smiled and then glanced at the cut on my head.

"How did you get that?" She asked.

I flushed deeper.

Damon gently grabbed my hands and dressed the grazes on my palms.

"She tripped over her own feet." He said with a chuckle.

I pouted.

"The path was bumpy." I defended myself, which made him laugh harder.

Jeremy rolled his eyes.

"You're hopeless." He said.

I threw him a deadly look.

"Seriously though, you should be careful Elena, you attract trouble. I mean how many times is Damon going to have to save your life before you realize you should just take him everywhere with you?" Caroline asked, trying to hide her smile.

I raised my eyebrows, amused.

"That's what I keep telling her." Damon said with a smirk.

"I wasn't in any life threatening danger tonight, and do you really want Damon tagging along on our shopping trips?" I asked Caroline with a grin.

She cringed.

"Ok, point taken."

"And in fact, I've saved Damon's life more times than he's saved mine! So really he's the one who needs the body guard."

Damon, Caroline and Jeremy all looked at me, I could see them taking in my appearance. Tiny, still a bit tipsy and with a Winnie The Pooh band aid on my head, I looked completely harmless.

The three of them cracked up at the comical image and I couldn't help but laugh with them.

It felt good, carefree. I was completely happy in that moment, I forgot about vampires, witches…Stefan. It was just us, my brother, my best friend and my… and Damon.

My favorite people in the world, I thought with a smile.

**Just a fluffy filler chapter :)**


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

* * *

With Stefan's funeral fast approaching, Damon had lots to organize. When he wasn't around I hated the way I felt, vulnerable and scared out of my mind. Not so much scared for myself but for the people around me. When Damon was here I knew that no harm would come to Jenna or Jeremy, but the irrational fear I had of losing somebody else became overwhelming when he was away. Not to mention the worry I had for _him, _he would check in every evening and I would wait nervously until I saw him, praying that he was all right.

I knew I was being silly; I was overreacting. But I couldn't, I couldn't even think about someone else dying. To many people who I loved already resided in the town cemetery.

* * *

It wasn't long before I snapped. I had never lost control like that before.

The day of the funeral arrived and I was sitting on my bed, every single item of clothing I owned lying strewn across my floor. Tears were streaming down my cheeks and my door was firmly locked.

The fact that I was going to Stefan's _funeral _had just crept up on me and knocked me flat on my ass. I didn't regret my decision to save Damon for a second, but that didn't change the fact that it was my fault that Stefan was dead. Essentially I had killed him. It may not have been my hands that put an end to his life, but it was my heart and that was almost worst.

There was a knock on my door.

"Elena sweetie, can you open the door?" Jenna called.

"Go away!" I half screamed, half sobbed.

I heard a sigh and then her footsteps, retreating.

_My fault, my fault, my fault._

The words were racing around my head, taunting me.

It was my fault that my parents had died, they had come to collect me from a party and they had _died. _All because of me. My fault. Always my fault.

I was a bad person, I decided. How could I be the death of so many people I loved and not be a bad person?

I screamed in anguish and smashed a picture from my wall, watching as the glass shattered across my room.

There was a noise from outside my room and more frantic knocking on my door; someone wiggled the handle.

"Elena, open this door right now." Jeremy yelled.

I threw the little china pot that I kept my earrings in at the door and it smashed, it's fragments joining the rest of the debris on my floor.

"Jenna!" Jeremy yelled.

I heard them talking outside my door. I tried to block them out, I felt bad for causing them worry, but I couldn't, I just couldn't face them. I couldn't look them in the eyes with the knowledge of how awful I truly was.

"Call Damon." Jeremy was saying frantically to Jenna.

Jenna was trying to protest.

"He's the only one who can calm her down Jenna. I'm scared she's going to hurt herself." Jeremy cut her off.

I screamed in fury and pain. I was breaking down, cracking at the seams. This was too much; it was all too much. Everything that I had faced over the past year just rained down on me and I felt _broken._

I ran across the room, ignoring the pain as the glass ripped into the soles of my feet. I grabbed at the photos of my loved ones that I had pinned on my wall. I violently tore them down. They shouldn't care about me, I was just going to kill them too. The little voice in my head kept repeating.

_You'll be the death of them Elena._

I sank to the floor sobbing.

The image of Jenna lying lifeless on the floor with blood oozing from every part of her body flashed through my mind, it was quickly replaced by Jeremy then Damon.

_Your fault._

"She won't open the door, she's been breaking things." Jeremy was telling somebody.

"Elena!" An urgent voice came from the door.

Damon.

"Elena, if you don't open this door right now, I am going to break it down." He said firmly.

I clutched at my head and my sobs became hysterical.

_All dead, all dead, all dead, all my fault._

"I mean it Elena. Open up right now." Damon called.

I ignored him; I don't think I could move if I tried. And I didn't want to see him; I didn't want him to look at me, disgusted, as he surely would. I had been the death of his brother. He should hate me.

"Three seconds and then I'm coming in." He said warningly.

I covered my ears with my hands and rocked back and forth, trying to rid my mind of images of the dead bodies of anyone I had ever cared about.

There was a crash and a cry of:

"Hey, you know you're paying for that right?"

Suddenly Damon was by my side. I shrank away from him.

He took in the state of my room, the frantic look in my eyes, the blood on my feet and the pure fear that was radiating from me and without a word, picked me up and cradled me in his arms.

I tried to push him away, I tried to struggle out of his grasp but he held me tight. He held me until I stopped fighting him. He was sitting against the wall, rocking me gently in his lap. I cried into his chest, I cried and cried until my tear ducts were dry, but still he didn't let go of me. He stroked my hair and whispered soothing words.

When I had calmed down he pulled away slightly to look at me, he brushed his thumb along my cheekbone.

"Elena, talk to me." He murmured.

I couldn't hold his gaze, I looked anywhere but his probing eyes.

"Hate me." I whispered suddenly.

He stared at me, frowning.

"What?"

"I need you to hate me." I clarified, still unable to look at him.

He cupped my face in his hands forcing me to look at him.

"Why would I hate you Elena?" He asked, shocked.

Fresh tears began to trickle down my cheeks.

"It's all my fault. I killed them all." I croak.

He stared at me, his face a mixture of shock, concern and sympathy.

"No you…" He began.

I cut him off.

"I killed them Damon. My parents, they were coming to pick me up, I was so selfish, we were arguing and then they…they died because of me. And Stefan, I don't regret the decision I made for a second but he died because of me. Even Anna died because of me, and Jenna nearly died and Jeremy tried to kill himself and it's all my fault." I drew in a shuddering breath and roughly wiped my eyes.

"Elena, listen to me. None of that was your fault…" He said.

I cut him off again.

I couldn't listen to him defending me.

"Why don't you hate me?" I cried out. "Please just hate me."

His brow creased with emotion.

"He was your brother." I yelled. A thought hit me and I choked on a strangled sob.

"I'm worse than Katherine."

I was vaguely aware of Jenna hovering nervously in the doorway but I ignored her.

"Why don't you hate me?" I whispered again.

Damon grabbed my face, almost roughly.

"Because I love you." He said passionately.

I stared at him, completely lost for words.

"And none of those people died because of you. Your parents died because fate was cruel enough to step in. Anna was all John's fault, or maybe mine for not being able to save her. Jenna and Jeremy are fine, and they're going to stay that away. I promise." He paused, looking deep into my watery eyes. "And Stefan, Stefan died because Jules is a cruel bitch who is going to be dead _very _soon. _None _of this is your fault. None of it!"

He searched my face as I stared at him in shock.

"But I…" I began.

"Would have done anything to save those people if you could have." He finished. "And 'Lena love, you are a million times the woman Katherine will ever be."


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

* * *

I wrapped my arms around his neck and buried my face in his shoulder.

We stayed like that for a while, my heart rate slowly returning to a normal pace. Eventually my breath stopped catching in my throat and I took a deep breath to calm myself. I pulled away to look at Damon, thinking about what he'd said; he said he loved me. I felt a warm tingling feeling in my tummy at that revelation.

"Damon…" I started. I wanted so desperately to return those words. I meant them, I knew I meant them with all my heart.

"Hang on a second." Jenna called.

I groaned at her for interrupting and Damon closed his eyes for a moment before flashing Jenna his kilowatt smile.

"Yes Jenna?" He asked politely, I could hear the well-disguised irritation in his voice.

"Who's Katherine? I thought Anna had to leave town…and why would John be responsible for her _death_? And who's Jules? And why will she be dead soon? And…and…you _love_ Elena?"

I looked at Damon, panicking.

"Oh god." I whispered.

Damon sighed.

"Compulsion?" He asked.

I closed my eyes, I hated doing this to Jenna, but she couldn't know all of that stuff. Not right now, I would have to tell her the truth eventually but I wasn't ready yet.

I grimaced and nodded at Damon.

"Just tell her that you came and calmed me down but she went downstairs and didn't hear our conversation." I whispered so Jenna couldn't hear me.

Damon got up quickly and moved towards Jenna who eyed him warily.

"Wait, vervain in the bracelet." I said quickly.

Damon slipped the bracelet off Jenna's wrist and she glared at him angrily.

"What do you think you're doing?" She gasped.

Damon looked into her eyes.

"You will go downstairs and forget about this conversation. You will remember that I came to help Elena but you will forget the things you heard."

Jenna repeated the words and walked away.

I felt vaguely sick, I hated doing this to her.

Damon glanced at me.

"You need to get dressed, I'll wait downstairs." He said quickly.

I opened my mouth to say something but he was already gone. I grabbed the first black clothes I could find, a short dress with dark tights and a pair of slip on pumps.

I looked in the mirror and cringed at the state of my face, I pulled my hair up into a ponytail and did my makeup. The overall effect wasn't bad, if a bit rushed.

I ran downstairs to find everyone waiting for me; Damon was leaning against the doorframe, his eyes far away.

"Honey you look beautiful." Jenna gushed, giving me a sympathetic smile.

I smiled and headed towards the door, they followed and Jeremy gave my shoulder a squeeze.

* * *

The church was crowded, I recognized people from school, I was surprised at how many friends Stefan had actually managed to make in his short time in Mystic Falls. The usher led us to our seats and Damon and I were in the front row. I guess we sort of counted as his only family.

Damon was staring straight ahead during the service, his eyes fixed on nothing in particular; his face was expressionless and hard. I felt tears creep their way down my cheeks; I hated funerals.

I closed my eyes; I just wanted this to be over, the pitying looks and empathetic condolences. The day went by in a blur, I was vaguely aware of Damon guiding me through the crowd, saying hello to people. Thanking them when they apologized for our loss. Damon's poker face didn't crack.

* * *

I sat on my bed with my diary on my knees; I didn't know where to start or what to say. There was a tap on my window and I jumped, my phone buzzed.

_It's me open up. D_

I opened the window and he slid smoothly into my room, taking a seat on my bed.

I smiled at him, unsure of what to say, he had been distant all day. His face was lacking its usual smirk or confidence. He looked sad.

I sat next to him and touched his arm.

"Are you ok?" I whispered.

He was staring off into the distance as though he were reliving another time.

"He used to make these little boats." He said suddenly, I stared at him confused.

"When we were kids we would go and play down by the river and he would make these boats out of leaves and sticks. We would lean over the side of the bridge and drop them in, see how far they'd travel before they sank."

He paused.

"One day he slipped, he must have been about six, I was eleven or twelve. He lent too far over the side and he fell in. I was so scared. I jumped in after him and I couldn't find him, he had gone under. I finally managed to get a hold of him and pull him out but he was unconscious. I was just a kid; I thought he was dead. I was crying and shaking him, trying to get him to wake up. One of our servants came to tell us to come and get ready for lunch; he saw Stefan and realized what had happened. He did CPR and saved his life. I didn't let Stefan out of my sight for weeks, I was so scared of losing him."

He broke off and glanced at me.

"We were best friends, he cried the day I went off to war. He begged me not to go. But then Katherine came along and drove a wedge between us, she broke us, tore us apart. I spent the last hundred years hating him, killing the people he loved, ruining his life in every way possible."

He stroked my cheek softly; I stared up at him, my eyes swimming with tears.

"You brought us together again. For all our jealousy and fighting, we were living under the same roof and not trying to kill each other. Because of you, we both wanted to save you more than anything so we overcame our differences. We became brothers again."

He looked at me steadily.

"Katherine tore us apart but you brought us together. I want you to remember that the next time you compare yourself to her." He finished softly.

I wiped at the tears on my cheeks and looked at him, my eyes wide, I wrapped my arms around his middle and lent my head on his shoulder.

"Tell me stories about when you were little." I whispered.

"Ok." He said quietly. "But get under the covers, you're cold."

I slipped into bed and lent against the headboard. Damon sat next to me and I burrowed into his side, he wrapped his arm around my shoulders.

"At Stefan's fourteenth birthday party…" He began.

I smiled and closed my eyes as I listened. Damon told me about his childhood, their parents, their house and their favorite things to do. I was enraptured by the world he grew up in.

I eventually drifted to sleep, dreaming of a different time. Where girls wore long dresses and corsets and boys raced ponies through the countryside.


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

I woke with a start, my heart beating erratically, the nightmare that had awoken me fresh in my mind. The look of sorrow in Damon's eyes as he turned away from me; the defeat on his face as he approached his inescapable death. How I stood there and watched as he died… for me.

I sat up and fought the racking sobs that were threatening me. Damon was sleeping beside me, his hair rumpled and his face relaxed. I swallowed the lump in my throat and curled into his chest. He stirred and wrapped his arms around me, pulling me closer against him.

"Elena." He murmured in his sleep.

Tears slipped down my cheeks.

I softly kissed his neck and his chin, trailing my lips in feather-light caresses across his face.

"God I love you." I said almost inaudibly.

He opened his eyes and stared at me.

"What?" He murmured.

My cheeks were still wet with tears and my eyelashes were glistening, Damon frowned.

"Elena…"

"I love you." I said. "I love you so much."

I reached up and crashed my lips with his in a kiss that was as full of desperation as it was passion. He responded with equal need and our mouths moved together in unison. My stomach was erupting with uncontrollable butterflies, a feeling I had never had with Stefan.

Damon laid me back on the bed and kissed me softly. His gentle hands moving down my body, I arched into him, my skin burning where he touched me. I needed him. I needed him so badly that it hurt.

I wrapped my arms around his neck and pulled him closer to me.

"Damon." I gasped.

His body molded into me, I could feel every contour, every muscle. His lips were warm and soft against mine; I had never wanted somebody more.

My hands moved to the buttons on his shirt, he curled his fingers around mine and pulled away from me. I stared at him questioningly.

"Lena…what are we doing?" He murmured.

I looked down.

"Can we not talk…there's a lot of other things we could do." I whispered.

I kissed him and he kissed back but quickly pulled away again. I sighed.

"I can't be your rebound Elena, I can't do this with you and then carry on the way things are. It would change _everything." _ He said.

"I _love _you Damon. Didn't you hear me?" I replied softly.

I could see the fight go out of him. He wanted me as badly as I wanted him. It was undeniable.

He pressed me into the bed and kissed my neck, I closed my eyes and moaned quietly. He pulled my top over my head and ran his hands down my sides, pausing at the dip of my waist.

"You're so beautiful Elena." He whispered.

My fingers fumbled with his shirt and it quickly joined mine on the floor. I touched his chest, stroking his muscles, feeling the lines of his body. He closed his eyes and sighed in contentment.

Damon's hands trailed over my hipbones and traced the line where my panties met my skin. I pulled his face back to mine and kissed him roughly, my lips molding to his in perfection.

I moved my hands down to the waistline of his jeans, dipping my fingers beneath, Damon's eyes fluttered open.

"Elena…" He began.

I shook my head.

"I want this Damon…I want you." I said softly.

**I promise I havent forgotten about you guys, i know this update has taken FOREVER! I will try and be better... :) x**


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

"_I want this Damon…I want you." I said softly. _

Damon held my gaze for a moment before bending to kiss my neck. I let my head fall back and he sucked and kissed my pulse point. I moaned quietly and he smiled against my skin.

His hands caressed my back and his nimble fingers unhooked my bra. He kissed down my chest and across my breasts; he gently bit my left nipple with his blunt teeth.

I curled my arms around his neck as his hands moved downwards.

Suddenly there was nothing but him, his hands on my body, and his breath in my ear whispering soft I love yous. I was so completely happy that I forgot about everything else, Damon took up my mind body and soul and I let him. I had never felt more alive.

* * *

I lay across Damon's bare chest, my arms wrapped around his torso. He was tracing lazy circles on my back with one hand and our legs were entangled under the covers. The early morning sun was creeping through the window, making my room shimmer gold. I sighed in contentment.

Damon chuckled softly.

"What?" I whispered.

He shook his head.

"I was just thinking what I would have said if you told me two years ago that I would be lying in bed _cuddling _with a human girl." He said with a smirk.

I giggled.

"It probably wouldn't have gone down well." I acknowledged.

He smiled and went quiet for a few moments, when he spoke again his voice was serious.

"I'm sorry…for the way I was when we met." He murmured.

I turned to look up at his face. The apology meant so much coming from him, I could see in his eyes how truly sorry he was.

"Its ok. That's all in the past." I replied softly. "As long as you're in my future, I don't care about the past."

He kissed the top of my head. I rested my elbows on his chest and propped myself up to look at him.

"Were you really going to kill me?" I asked suddenly, curiosity taking over.

He stared at me, momentarily floored.

"What?"

"When you first came back to Mystic falls, were you really going to kill me?" I clarified.

He sighed.

"I'm not sure." He said honestly. "At the beginning I think I was too in love with Katherine to actually hurt her doppelganger. And by the time I realized what a worthless bitch she is, I had begun to care about _you._"

He paused.

"That night at my fathers' grave…I fed you my blood because I couldn't conceive of killing you if you weren't going to come back in some form." He mused.

I brushed my finger across his bottom lip and smiled softly.

"You're a strange man." I murmured.

He smirked.

"You're not the first person to tell me that darling." He said with a chuckle.

I laughed softly.

"Hey Elena, you up yet?" Jeremy called, walking into my room.

He froze when he saw Damon and I entangled beneath the sheets. He screwed his eyes closed. I blushed scarlet and Damon laughed at Jeremy's expression.

"Oh! Ummmm…Ok, awkward... I'm going to go before I'm scarred for life." Jeremy muttered, turning to leave.

He didn't open his eyes and walked into the door. I cringed and bit my lip anxiously, Damon was now shaking with laughter beside me.

Jeremy managed to get himself out of the room and I covered my face with my hands.

"Oh, this is not good." I moaned.

"Did you see his face?" Damon snorted.

I tried to scowl but despite my best efforts began to laugh with him.

**I am starting a new Delena centered story! Its called "I'll Always Be With You" Summary: At the Masquerade ball what if Jeremy hadn't stopped Stefan and Damon in time and they killed Katherine. Elena dies but is she really dead ? ... Be sure to check it out :)**


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11**

I woke up a few hours later and reached across for Damon, I was disappointed to find the bed empty. Yawning I got up and grabbed my dressing gown from the back of the door. As I left my room I heard voices floating up from the kitchen.

"You sure it's where they're staying?" Damon asked.

I paused at the top of the stairs.

"Positive. Do you have any idea what they want?"

It was Alaric's voice.

"No, but I don't care. Jules is going to die." Damon said coldly.

There was a pause.

"Wouldn't it be best to know what they're planning before we just barge in?"

I could almost hear Damon roll his eyes.

"They killed my brother and they threatened my…Elena. I am not hanging around or giving second chances."

"So what's the plan? Fight to the death?" Ric said coolly.

Damon chuckled darkly.

"Theirs hopefully."

"Damon we're outnumbered. It might not end well…" Ric tried to reason.

"They want something with Elena. That night they said they weren't going to hurt her _yet _which means they need her for something…" He paused.

"They've overpowered me before…if they hurt her because I wasn't willing to fight against the odds…I would _never _forgive myself."

There was a silence as Ric processed the out of character speech.

"We'll do it tonight." He finally said.

I walked down the stairs and into the room, staring at the two men silently.

"Damon can I talk to you for a minute?" I asked quietly.

Ric excused himself and walked out.

"Elena…" Damon began.

I shook my head, cutting him off.

"Is there any chance that if you go and fight those werewolves tonight, you won't come back?"

He sighed and looked away.

"Yes. Yes there is a chance." He answered.

I nodded, swallowing the lump in my throat.

"I don't want you to do it." I whispered.

He watched me.

"Lena, they're dangerous and they need to be dealt with. They killed Stefan." He said firmly.

Tears stung my eyes.

"I know they killed him Damon, I was there, remember?" I said coldly. "I am not going to let them kill you as well."

He opened his mouth to respond but I interrupted.

"You think you'd be protecting me by dying? I can't go through that Damon, I can't lose you, ever. It would be too much I couldn't…I…"

I swallowed trying to fight my tears.

Suddenly he was in front of me, lifting my chin softly.

"Elena I love you. But I have to do this." He whispered.

I shook my head.

"Please." I begged.

He pulled me into his arms and rested his chin on my head.

"I'll be fine kitten, you really think I would go and die just when you've finally admitted that you love me?" He chuckled.

I smiled weakly and pulled away to look at him.

"Damon Salvatore, if you die, I am going to kick your ass." I said dryly.

He kissed me on the nose.

"I'd like to see you try." He said with a raised eyebrow.

"Bring it on vamp." I teased.

"Oh well you asked for it." He said, chasing me as I dashed into the sitting room.

He tackled me and flipped us over in the air so that I landed, unscathed on top of him. I leaned down and kissed him sweetly.

I knew he was trying to distract me but I didn't really care, it was these moments that made life worth living.

Whatever he said, I knew they would be fighting a losing battle against the wolves and I didn't want to think about what the night might bring.

**I know you all must hate me so much right now, i will try and update quicker but i am just really uninspired by this story atm :( if anyone has any ideas about where they want it to go then let me know!**


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12**

"Please don't leave me." I mumbled, looking at the ground.

Tears were trickling down my nose and I clutched nervously at my clothes.

"Please." I begged.

Damon cupped my face and gave me a small smile.

"I could never leave you." He said firmly.

Alaric sat in the car watching us; we stood in front of my house, rain soaking us to the bone.

"Damon I know you think you have to do this but…"

He cut me off.

"If I don't do this they might hurt you. And I can't take chance Elena." He said, tucking a strand of my wet hair behind my ear.

I took a deep breath and tried to stop my tears.

"But if you don't come back…"

He kissed me softly, his lips just lightly caressing mine.

"I will come back sweetheart, I promise." He whispered.

I nodded tearfully and kissed him again, throwing my arms around his neck and clinging onto him for dear life. He stroked my hair and whispered soothing words in my ear.

I was suddenly very aware of Alaric's surprised eyes watching us. I had forgotten that he didn't know about the new developments in our relationship. I pulled away from Damon and glanced nervously at Ric, wiping at my tears.

I took one last look at Damon and turned away quickly, running back into the house.

"So… when did that happen?" I heard Ric ask Damon.

There was no reply, just the sound of car doors slamming and tires squealing on gravel.

I didn't look around as they drove away; I swallowed the lump in my throat and closed the front door behind me.

I collapsed on the couch and rested my head in my hands.

All it would take was one bite. One bite and he would be gone forever. I had saved his life at the expense of someone I was sure I loved more than him, of course now I had come to realize that I didn't really love _anyone _more than him. But if he…died, I didn't know what I would do, Damon was my last shred of sanity, the thing that was holding me together.

I remembered how much pain Rose had been in, how towards the end she forgot who I was, where she was, what was real and what wasn't. If Damon were bitten by one of the wolves the same would happen to him. Would he forget who I was? In the throws of his delirium would he end up killing me? The thought had more tears trickling down my cheeks. I wiped at them angrily.

I couldn't lose him; I knew that to be a fact. I had to do something, I was not going to sit here fretting and wondering whether or not I was going to lose another loved one tonight.

A plan quickly forming in my head, I jumped up and grabbed my jacket from the back of the door. I ran outside and towards my car, slipping in the rain.

I drove as fast as I could towards Bonnie's house, I didn't know if she would help me, in fact I was pretty sure that she wouldn't. But she was the only one with enough power to be of any use against Jules and her pack.

I parked on the curb by her house and ran up the porch steps, pounding loudly on the door.

Bonnie opened it and stared at me in confusion.

"I didn't expect to see you here…like ever." She said quietly.

I swallowed.

"Bonnie…we've been best friends since we were kids. I am begging you to help me." I whispered.

She looked surprised, sad and then concerned.

"Are you ok?" She finally asked.

I shook my head.

"I know you hate him, but I love him with all my heart and as my best friend I need your help."

Bonnie's face hardened at the mention of Damon.

I pleaded with her with my eyes, tears glistening at the corners.

"What's wrong with him?" She asked.

I stared at her hopefully.

"He's gone to kill the wolves, but he and Ric are outnumbered and it won't be an even fight. Just one bite and…"

I trailed off.

Bonnie looked deep in thought.

"Why do you love him?" She murmured suddenly, her face twisted into confusion. "It's just, I don't understand how you could forgive everything that he's done, Elena."

I sighed.

"I know that Damon has done bad things, but did you ever stop to think of the motive? Everything he's done had been because of heartbreak and betrayal and hurt. Everyone he loved; loved Stefan more…except me. He's got an amazing heart once you find it Bonnie, I wish you could believe that."

Bonnie was staring at me, her face surprisingly soft.

"Can you be sure that he will never hurt you?" She asked.

I nodded immediately.

"He would never, ever hurt me. Whatever happened, he wouldn't hurt me, I promise." I said with complete assurance.

She held my eyes for a moment before nodding slowly.

"Ok, I'll do it."

I threw my arms around her, my heart soaring with relief.

"Thank you."

She nodded.

"Let's go."

We ran to my car and I began to drive well over the speed limit towards the town boundary.

"Do you know where they are?" Bonnie asked.

I nodded.

"That big rundown house just south of town…you know the one they keep on meaning to restore but never have?"

We drove in silence for the rest of the way, the sound of rain pouring down and the wipers sweeping across the windscreen the only noises breaking the silence.

I pulled off the road and started bumping down a muddy track.

"We're here." I whispered.

Bonnie looked around.

"I'm going to go in and take them all down. Damon and Alaric can kill them while they're incapacitated. You, stay out of the way and don't get hurt." She said briskly.

I swallowed nervously but nodded.

The dark house drew into sight and I pursed my lips in determination.

It was now or never.


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter 13**

* * *

I got out of the car as quietly as I could and Bonnie followed, pushing herself in front of me as we reached the door. The doors opened silently as we approached. I stared at Bonnie, she had become so powerful and I hadn't even noticed.

I crept behind her into the ruined house. It must have been beautiful once, the grand staircase and high ceilings spoke of another time. I wondered if Stefan and Damon's old house had looked like this in 1864. For some reason it reminded me of them, reminded me how much I still didn't know, how much I would never know.

My inner musings were disrupted by the sounds of snarling and tearing coming from some remote corner of the house. I froze, fear rising in my throat. I started towards where I thought the noises were coming from, saving Damon the only thing on my mind.

Bonnie yanked me back by the arm.

"What did I say about staying safe? Its in your best interest you know, if its you or Damon I will let him die in a second."

I frowned slightly but nodded, letting her take the lead.

We crept through the dark rooms in silence, following the terrifying sounds, my heart beating faster with every second.

It was dark, the windows were draped with heavy cloths and there was no electricity or candles. My foot caught on something and I tripped, sending myself sprawling across the floor.

Bonnie ran to me and pulled me up. My knee was bleeding; a small trickle of blood seeping through my jeans. Bonnie watched it cautiously before glancing back the way we had come.

"Can Damon handle that?" She asked, gesturing towards my knee.

I rolled my eyes.

"He would never hurt me Bonnie. And anyway I've been injured worse around him."

She gave me an appraising look before nodding and going to investigate what I had tripped on.

I felt along the floor with my hands until I found the culprit. My hands met something surprisingly warm and soft…and sticky.

I shrieked as I realized it was a body, Bonnie clasped her hand over my mouth and I stared shakily at the blood on my hands. I swallowed convulsively. I had to keep it together, I couldn't lose it now, Damon's life depended on it.

I took a deep breath and Bonnie backed off. She helped me turn the body over and we peered at his face. It wasn't Damon or Ric. We both breathed a sigh of relief and continued our progress towards the fight.

We weren't going fast enough for me, with every thump and snarl I imagined one of the wolves teeth sinking into Damon's body, I shuddered and pushed forward.

There was a dim light flickering around the corner and Bonnie cautiously approached it, me hot on her heels. There was a gasp of pain and a yell of.

"Oh no you don't." Followed by a sickening crack.

Bonnie raced into the room taking in the scene quickly.

I followed quickly behind.

Ric was clutching at a bleeding arm, the floor was scattered with five or six dead bodies, one of them slumped at Damon's feet. My eyes fell on him then, his hair was matted to his head and he was breathing heavily. I scanned his body for any injuries and saw in horror a sharp piece of word lodged in his abdomen.

There were two wolves left, Jules and someone I didn't know. Damon had turned at the sound of our entrance and was staring at me in fury. His dark brows knitted together with anxiety.

Jules took the opportunity of his momentary distraction and jumped on him, knocking him to the ground.

I screamed as his head hit the wall and he struggled to push her off him.

"Bonnie!" I yelled.

She had her eyes closed and was muttering words in Latin. I screamed again as Jules stabbed Damon with a chair leg.

It missed his heart but he yelled in pain as it sank into his shoulder.

Ric ran forward, fumbling with some sort of weapon.

The other wolf dropped to the ground, writhing on the floor in agony.

"Bonnie, help Damon." I yelled.

She was concentrating again, seemingly oblivious of my voice.

Jules had the upper hand, Damon was injured, Ric was injured. Without thinking, I ran at Jules. Damon caught the movement from the corner of his eyes.

"Elena no!" He yelled.

I ignored him, throwing myself onto Jules's back. She jumped in surprised and swung around. I wrapped my arms around her neck in a vice like grip and curled my legs around her waist. I refused to let go as she stood up and clawed at my hands.

Damon was struggling to stand and Ric was trying to help him. His bright blue eyes were trained on me, filled with agony at his helplessness to save me. I knew that look, I had seen it before but this time I wasn't backing down I was going to show Jules that I wasn't just a helpless human girl. No one hurt Damon and got away with it. No one broke into my house and killed someone I cared about and didn't get punished.

Despite my determination I was only a human girl and a light one at that. Jules was strong, even in human form. What the hell was taking Bonnie so long?

Jules ran backwards, slamming me into the wall, I gasped in pain and my arms involuntarily loosened. Damon had managed to get to his feet and was approaching the wolf as fast as he could. Bonnie was still in some sort of trance by the door.

I vaguely noticed Ric stab the other wolf who was still rolling on the floor in the chest.

Jules slammed me into a wall again and my head cracked against the stone, I lost my bearings for a second, everything spinning out of control. I blinked trying to focus but all I could see was white.

I screwed my eyes closed and when I opened them again I blurrily saw that I was still clinging precariously to Jules's back. Damon was nowhere to be seen and Bonnie was on the floor, blood trickling out of her nose. Something wet was trickling down he back of my head.

Suddenly Jules went limp and began to fall to the floor, Damon caught me in his arms and lowered me into his lap. My head was spinning, but I dazedly looked at Jules to see that a large knife was protruding from her stomach.

I turned my attention to Damon who was examining my head.

He had pulled out the stakes but dark red patches stained his clothes.

I groaned as my head began to pound, I felt sick.

I clutched at Damon's jacket and he looked down at me.

"What the hell were you thinking?" He whispered angrily.

His voice was harsh and cold but his eyes were desperate with worry.

I closed my eyes; the light was hurting them.

"Elena!" Damon yelled shaking me roughly.

I looked at him.

"Elena listen to me very carefully. You must not go to sleep, do you hear me?"

I nodded and leant into his embrace.

"Are you ok?" I asked softly.

He stiffened around me.

"I'm fine ." He said.

I looked around for the others.

Ric was tending to an unconscious Bonnie. He checked her pulse as I watched and, seeming satisfied came over to us.

"Is she ok?" He asked Damon."

"She 's got a bad concussion." Damon replied. "Maybe I should take her to the ER."

Ric looked at me.

"Well I'm going to head over there. This arm hurts like a bitch and I don't have enough painkillers to get me through tonight. "

Damon nodded and my eyes drifted closed again.

I felt a shift in movement and realized that Damon had stood up and was now carrying me…somewhere. I was too tired to care where. He was alive, that was all that mattered. It had been close but he was going to be ok. I smiled softly to myself and lent my head against his chest. I breathed in his familiar scent and vaguely heard him yelling my name as I drifted into unconsciousness.


	14. Chapter 14

**Chapter 14**

* * *

"What the hell were you thinking? She could have been killed."

"I told her not to get involved. The plan was that I take down the wolves and…"

"Well it didn't work did it?"

"I told you, there was something blocking me. That house has power."

They were arguing in loud whispers near by. I cracked my eyes open and groaned when I took in the hospital room. I hated hospitals.

Damon heard me move and was instantly there, brushing my hair off my face.

"Hey love, how are you feeling?" He asked quietly.

I scowled at him.

"Pissed." I muttered. "Why couldn't you have just given me blood? I hate this stupid place." I glared around at the hospital. "No good ever comes of being here."

He sighed.

"I know, but I can't just feed you my blood all the time. I'll only do that if there's no other option."

"Why not?" I asked indignantly.

He raised an eyebrow.

"As far as I remember you never liked it when you drank my blood before." He said, a hint of a smirk on his lips.

I flushed slightly.

"Yes but that was before you brought me to a hospital." I was well aware I was sounding like a brat but I didn't really care. This place made everything seem so bleak.

Bonnie approached the bed and gave me a small smile.

Damon threw her a dirty look.

Bonnie rolled her eyes and patted my hand.

"How are you feeling?" She asked.

I shrugged.

"Are you ok? What happened back there Bon?" I stared at her, scanning for any injuries.

She looked uncomfortable.

"There was some sort of power there…It was preventing me from doing any spells. It was like this intense pressure in my head." She murmured.

I looked at her, concerned.

"Are you ok? Did it hurt you?" I asked quickly.

She gave me a small smile.

"I'm fine Elena, you're the one we're worried about."

Damon glared at me.

"I am furious at you by the way." He said.

I flinched under his hard gaze.

"Why?"

He groaned.

"Elena you could have been killed! You jumped on a dagger wielding werewolf's back. Did you forget that?" He snapped.

"She was trying to save your life!" Bonnie defended.

He rolled his eyes.

"I was fine. And anyway my life is _not_ worth hers. You should know better."

"She gave me an ultimatum…I didn't want to save your life one bit, don't worry."

He opened her mouth to argue but I cut him off.

"_She _is right here and _she _can make her own decisions. You _are_ worth saving." I spat.

"Well you've always had poor judgment." Damon replied.

I glared, furious.

"You know, you're turning into Stefan." I said, regretting the words the minute they left my mouth.

He stared at me, shocked, hurt and angry.

I winced and he sighed, swallowed his emotions and kept his expression blank.

"We can fight later. Now you need to rest."

I conceded and lent back against the pillows.

"Try to get some sleep ok?" Bonnie said.

I nodded and they both turned to leave.

I caught Damon's eyes and tried to silently tell him that I hadn't meant it. I wasn't sure if he understood or not but seconds later I was alone.

My mind swam with thoughts, my heart with emotions.

_When the lines between lives begin to blur, that is when love truly occurs. _

I wasn't sure where I'd heard that saying, but it was haunting me. I had become Katherine. Because of love.

I had done what I had sworn never to do. I had hurt both Salvatore brothers. I had hurt them both so many times.

I had loved Stefan. I really had, arguing that fact was pointless. I had loved him but I wasn't _in _love with him. I never felt about Stefan the way I did about Damon. And that scared me.

Stefan was gone, and it hurt every day, I missed him and mourned him. But there was nothing I could do to save him. I wasn't going to let Damon die for me. I wasn't going to have his blood on my hands.

He would die for me in a second, I knew that, which is why I suddenly knew what I had to do.

Tears slipped down my cheeks as a plan formed in my head. It would break both our hearts…but Damon with a broken heart was better than no Damon at all.

**I am already going through withdrawals! An entire four months without TVD...I am going to die :( **


	15. Chapter 15

**Chapter 15**

I woke up sometime during the night, my heart pounding and tears streaming down my cheeks as the memories of a nightmare haunted me.

I felt Damon's hand brush gently across my cheek. I realized he had been sleeping in the chair by the bed.

"It's ok, sweetheart." He whispered.

More tears fled my eyes as images from the dream flooded back. I wrapped my arms around his neck, trying to reassure myself that he was really there.

He pulled me into a tight embrace and rested his chin on my head.

"It was just a dream kitten." He reassured.

I tried to calm my breathing, relaxing into his arms.

"Why don't you tell me what happened?"

I squeezed my eyes tight shut.

"There was so much blood." I shuddered. "You were right there and… your skin went all grey." I whispered incoherently.

My chest heaved and he climbed onto the bed and lay down, pulling me down so my head rested against his chest.

"I'm right here Elena. It was just a dream." His breath tickled my ear.

"I love you Damon. You know that right?" I murmured.

"Yeah, I know." He replied softly. "I love you too."

I drifted back to sleep in the comfort of his arms.

* * *

They let me out the next day and I went home. I walked through the motions of life like a robot, my mind elsewhere. I had come to a conclusion and a plan was forming in my head.

That night I grabbed a small suitcase from under my bed, tears already trickling down my cheeks. I took a deep breath and reminded myself why I was doing this.

I ran to my closet and rummaged through my clothes, grabbing a couple of pairs of jeans, some tops and my favorite leather jacket. Along with some underwear, my wash bag and a pocket photo album, I put everything in the small bag and zipped it closed.

I took a shuddering breath as I looked around my room.

I had to do this. Bonnie, Ric and Damon had nearly died, they would risk their lives for mine and I couldn't bare the thought of anyone dying for me. I wasn't worth it. I really wasn't.

This way, if I just cut ties with everyone. Left and never looked back, started a new life somewhere else…everyone would be safe. They would be sad for a while, but life would go on. And that was the important thing.

Jenna and Jeremy could go back to a life without the supernatural, be as much of a normal family as they could. Bonnie and Caroline would carry on pretty much the same, just with fewer life threatening situations. And Damon…Damon would be heartbroken. I knew that, I knew he loved me, if he loved me as much as I loved him then it would be an excruciating thing to live through. But he would live through it.

With me around Damon's very long life expectancy was severely decreased. He risked himself for me; let his guard down because of me. I was like his kryptonite. I had to get as far away from him as possible for him to be safe. It was sort of a testimony to how much I loved him that I was doing this. I knew he wouldn't see it that way, he would see it as a betrayal…but I was willingly breaking my heart to save his life. It was the right thing to do. I was sure of it.

I couldn't let anyone else in my life die.

I crept down the dark staircase, trying not to bump the suitcase. I looked around at my childhood home and swallowed hard.

I ran out to my car, skidding slightly on the wet steps. I threw my bag in the back and started the engine.

My hands were shaking on the steering wheel as I drove towards the boarding house.

I pulled to the side of the road a few minutes before I reached the house, knowing that Damon would hear the car.

I walked as quietly as I could up to the big wooden door.

I thought about just forgetting about any of this and letting myself in. I could spend the night with Damon, losing myself in his touches, in his love.

I shook my head and willed myself to be strong.

I pulled a piece of paper out of my pocket and read the words for the last time.

_Dear Damon,_

_By the time you read this I will be gone. I know you will hate me for this, but I beg you to understand._

_I once read a poem, T.S Elliot, I think. He said that when you care for someone's life more than their heart, you truly love them. I didn't understand what he meant at the time, I had never loved someone so much that I would hurt them to protect them. _

_I imagine you are rolling your eyes or muttering some comment about vampires not needing protection from anyone. But the truth is I would rather be content in the knowledge that you are alive and well, than knowing that you are out risking your life for me. I am not worth that. Believe me!_

_Without me around there is a high probability that you will live for eternity. However much it hurts to leave, that makes it worth it._

_Please don't come looking for me, I need you to let me go. I'm sorry for all the hurt I've caused you, I wish I could fix everything but I can't. At least I can try to prevent further harm._

_I love you more than you can imagine, please believe that. You are the kindest, strongest, most exceptional man I have ever met._

_I hope with all my heart that things only get better for you from here. _

_Yours always, _

_Elena _

I slipped my letter under the door and backed away. I stared up at the big house, it was like my second home, and I loved the man who lived there more than I had ever loved anyone.

I pressed my hand over my mouth to muffle my own tears as I ran back to the car.

"I love you, Damon." I whispered as I drove away.

I drove until the sky began to lighten and the moon faded.

My tears had dried on my cheeks and my eyes were red and tired.

I checked into a cheap motel in some remote town and slept for as long as I could. Terrifying images haunted me and my sleep was fitful and short lived.

My phone rang loudly in the quiet room. I watched as Damon's name flashed onto the screen again and again.


	16. Chapter 16

**Chapter 16**

* * *

I had taken Bonnie's call but only to beg her not to track me. I told her that I needed to escape all the craziness and try to live a normal life. I knew she wouldn't have liked my real reason for leaving. She finally agreed not to do any spells to find me as long as I kept in touch every now and then to let her know I was safe.

I agreed and said goodbye. I imagined what Damon must have been thinking right now, how he must have felt when he read my letter. I shook those thoughts away; I couldn't go down that path. I knew why I was doing this. I had made up my mind.

The next few days passed in a blur of driving and crying. I was sleep deprived and heartbroken. The only thing that kept me going forward was the knowledge that everyone I loved was safe.

* * *

I was sitting in a small diner, gazing out at the grey streets of a South Carolina town one morning. It had four days since I had left and every one was an effort, every day it hurt.

I picked lazily at my pancakes, I hadn't really eaten properly in days but I wasn't hungry.

Rain trickled down the window and I lent back in the red leather booth and watched each drop make its' journey down the glass.

A voice startled me out of my reverie and I jumped, turning around in my seat.

An old lady sat across from me, she was small and dark, her white hair curling around her wrinkled face. Her eyes were black and full of wisdom. I stared at her, fumbling for words as I took in her striking appearance.

"You must return to him, child." She whispered.

Her voice was low and throaty and I frowned not understanding. Maybe she was crazy.

"He needs you." She said urgently.

I shook my head.

"I'm sorry, do I know you?" I asked in a small voice.

She smiled.

"No, you don't know me. But I know your pain."

"I don't know what you're talking about." I muttered.

I looked away, trying to think of an excuse to leave without sounding rude.

"You think you are protecting him by leaving but you need each other." She whispered.

I stared at her, swallowing a lump in my throat as Damon's face flashed in front of my eyes.

"How…?" My voice shook.

"Your souls are entwined. One will die without the other." She rambled, her eyes boring into mine.

"You understand what I am saying child. You must follow your heart, the heart always knows best."

I nodded slowly, tears now forming in my eyes.

She got up to leave.

"Wait! How do you know this?" I gasped.

She smiled softly at me.

"Follow your heart." She murmured.

And then she was gone. I stared around the diner but I couldn't see her.

I walked back to the car deep in thought, the old woman's words swirling through my mind. How had she known to say those things? How had she known what I was feeling, what I had done?

I rolled my eyes at myself; I lived in a world full of vampires, werewolves and witches. Did I really doubt that a little old lady could be psychic?

I sat in the drivers seat, gazing out at the dreary backdrop. I missed Damon so much that it was a physical pain in my chest. I missed being able to always find comfort in his arms, whatever the situation. I missed the way he would look at me like I was the most precious thing in the world.

At night I would roll over, my hands reaching for him, only to come into contact with cold sheets. And yet I knew how many times more it would hurt if he weren't there because he was dead. If instead of looking at his photo every day, I sat at his grave.

With that thought in mind I carried on driving, not stopping until the light began to fade and my eyes began to droop.

I pulled in to a best western and got a room for the night. I didn't even bother changing into my pajamas, flopping onto the bed the minute the door closed behind me.

* * *

_My phone rang and rang, jarring me out of sleep. I fumbled for it groggily and glanced at the caller id. I sighed when I saw Bonnie's name; I picked up and mumbled a sleepy hello._

"_Elena sweetie, I have some bad news." Bonnie said quietly._

_I sat up, fully awake now, my heart pounding in my chest._

"_What?" I asked, trepidation coloring my voice._

"_It's Damon. I'm so sorry Elena but he's…dead." _

_Everything swirled black. Dark colors leaping from the shadows._

_I knelt by a grave, a bunch of red roses in my hand._

"_I love you Damon." I whispered._

"_This is your fault you know." I whirl around to see Ric standing a few feet behind me. "You may have been his kryptonite but you were also his essence." _

_I shook my head violently._

"_I tried to prevent this." I shouted at him._

_He shrugged and walked away, his shoulders hunched._

_Fingers clawed at my hair, pulling and tugging on my clothes. Calloused hands ran across my skin, I shivered and tried to pull away, they held me tight. My tears quickly turned to screams as my head hit the ground._

"_Damon, help me." I screeched, struggling to free myself._

_He drifted passed me, his beautiful eyes sad._

"_Only you had the power to hurt me like that. Why would you do that to me?" He whispered._

"_No Damon!" I tried to reach for him but he was fading away. "Damon!" I sobbed into the grass._

"_You should have followed your heart." _

I woke up with a muffled scream, my body damp with sweat and my breathing ragged.

Without a second thought I scrambled off the bed, grabbed my stuff and took off. I left the room key at the front desk and ran to my car.

I hit the highway and stomped on the gas, driving hell for leather back the way I had come.


	17. Chapter 17

**Chapter 17**

All of the well thought-out reasons for my departure fled my mind. The images of my dream were still fresh behind my eyes and all I wanted to do was throw myself into Damon's arms and forget everything else.

I drove all night, fear forcing me forwards.

As daylight began to filter through the clouds I reached mystic falls. I didn't slow until I pulled up into the boarding house driveway. I ran, slipping on the wet gravel, up to the front door and pushed it open.

"Damon?" I yelled, tears pricking my eyes when I got no reply.

"Damon!" I ran through the house. "Damon, please!"

"Elena?"

I turned around to see Ric emerge from the sitting room.

"Where is he?" I asked desperately.

Ric sighed and shook his head.

"He was out looking for you but he came back and then left again. He was angry…so I didn't question him."

"He was looking for me? Where?"

Ric looked at me, his face a mixture of anger and concern.

"He's been looking for you everywhere since you left. I think he's searched the entire state."

I turned and ran back to my car. I didn't have a clue where he might be or where to start looking. Ric called after me but I ignored him, my tires skidding as I drove away.

I tried to think where he might go when he was angry…he would want to vent, somewhere where there were no people to witness it.

I headed towards the woods, I remembered Damon once telling me that he went out there to think.

My eyes scanned the thick trees on either side of the lane. I didn't know what I was looking for but I had to find him, I had to. I had to see for myself that he was ok.

Tears stung my eyes and I blinked, trying to clear my vision. A movement at the side of the road pulled my focus and I swerved, bringing the car to a stop at the side of the road. I stared at the woods to my right and saw the movement again, there was a loud crack and a tree shuddered and shook.

I scrambled out of the car, and began to run towards the trees. Rain was pouring down, drenching me to the bone. I followed the sounds of breaking and smashing, praying with all my heart that he was there.

I caught my sneaker on a tree branch and went flying. I landed in a muddy puddle and quickly pulled myself up, struggling to navigate the thick woods.

I stopped and ran a dirty hand through my wet hair. Tears slipped down my cheeks and I stared around at my surroundings. What was I doing here? There was no reason for Damon to be here; it had just been a hunch. How many times had people told me not to go into the woods alone? I was being stupid and irrational.

I turned to walk back the way I had come, tears blinding me.

"God damn it!"

The yell was loud and furious. I would recognize that voice anywhere.

I turned and began to run. There was another crack and I broke into a small clearing just in time to see a tree fall to the floor, its' trunk splintering dangerously.

Damon was violently destroying whatever came within reach. He was covered in dirt, his drenched clothes clinging to his body. My heart soared at the sight of him. He hadn't noticed me, too focused on the demolition around him.

I sprinted towards him, desperate for the feel of his arms around me and considerably nervous about the shards of wood that were so close to him.

He turned and saw me, his face was distraught, his eyes wild. His brows furrowed at the sight of me, pulling down towards his eyes as if he didn't believe what he was seeing.

I noticed for the first time that not all of the water on his face was rain.

I hurtled against him and threw my arms around his neck. I crashed my lips against his and he responded with equal need, his mouth hard against mine. I didn't care that he was covered in sweat and mud, I didn't care that I was shivering with cold, I needed him. The kiss was raw and passionate, our salty tears mingling together.

Suddenly he pushed me away and grabbed my arms, shaking me roughly. My teeth rattled and he stared at me furiously.

"Don't _ever _do that again Elena. Do you hear me? Never leave like that again." He yelled.

"I'm sorry." I sobbed. "I'm so sorry."

He ran his hands down my cheeks, his thumbs brushing at the tears.

"Elena."

He kissed every inch of my face, his tearstained lips roughly moving against my skin.

"I love you so much Damon." I whispered.

He crushed me to his body and I cried into his chest.

"I can't go through that again Elena. You can't do that to me again."

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry."

He pushed me away again and slammed his lips down on mine. He pressed me hard against a tree and I melted into him. The rain poured down on us, as we mercilessly got lost in each other. He was rough, hurt and anger evident in his actions. We devoured each other, desperate for contact; I craved him like I had never craved anything before in my life.

Whatever the risks, I couldn't face them without him.

* * *

We lay in Damon's bed, damp sheets tangled around our bodies. I was draped across Damon's chest, breathing heavily.

"Promise me you won't leave again Elena." He murmured, staring at the ceiling.

I shifted so that I could caress his face.

"I promise I will never leave you again." I whispered.

He met my eyes.

"Why would you think I would want an eternity without you in it?" He asked.

I brushed my fingers across his lips.

"I just couldn't bare the thought of you getting hurt and it being my fault." I replied quietly.

He shook his head.

"Stupid girl. When you're here I have a reason to keep myself alive, when you're not…"

I kissed his neck.

"Please don't finish that sentence." I whispered.

He tangled his fingers in my hair.

"I love you so much that it hurts." He murmured.

"I know the feeling."

He tightened his grip on my body, holding me impossibly close, as if he were afraid I would disappear if he let go.

"You're mine Elena. Forever, ok?"

"Ok." I said simply, wanting nothing more.


	18. Chapter 18

**Chapter 18**

* * *

"Hey Damon, you here?"

I stirred in my sleep as a man's loud voice broke through my dreams.

I vaguely wondered why Damon hadn't answered, what with vamp hearing he should have heard the person before they entered the house.

I was way too tired to be thinking this deeply.

"Damon?"

I heard the sound of a door and my eyes flew open.

"Oh jeez, Elena I'm sorry." Ric muttered, standing awkwardly at the entrance to Damon's bedroom.

I yanked the sheets up around my neck and stared at him with bleary eyes.

"Sorry. He wasn't answering his phone…I was worried he'd done something stupid." He said.

I nodded and glanced at the empty bed beside me.

"Um, I'm not sure where he went." I murmured, my head still fuzzy with sleep.

Ric sighed and looked at me slightly disapprovingly.

"Elena, I've got to talk to you." He sighed.

I frowned.

"Ok…give me five minutes, I'll meet you downstairs." I said resignedly.

He nodded and left.

I groaned as I hauled myself out of bed. I really didn't want to be awake, I had been driving all of the night before and I was having trouble keeping my eyes open.

I also didn't want to get into a deep conversation with my step uncle slash history teacher. This had the potential to be extremely awkward. Although probably not any more awkward than him finding me naked in Damon's bed.

I vaguely wondered where Damon was but I wasn't worried, he would have woken me if it was something important.

I pulled on a pair of jeans and one of Damon's shirts, making a mental note to remember to leave some spare clothes at the boarding house.

I traipsed down the stairs yawning; Ric was standing in the kitchen staring out of the window. I gave him a small smile as I walked in.

I pulled out the coffee pot and opened the lid, there was a small piece of paper inside. My frown turned to a laugh as I read the note.

"Damon's at an emergency council meeting." I announced.

Ric raised an eyebrow.

"He left a note in the coffee?"

I shrugged.

"Guess he figured it was the only place I'd be sure to see it."

I put the coffee on and turned to face Ric.

"So…?" I began.

He nodded.

"Right… I wanted to talk to you about Jenna and Jeremy."

I looked startled.

"Are they ok?" I asked.

He sighed.

"Not really Elena. I mean, you just disappeared; Jenna was freaking out…threatening to call the police." He glared at me accusingly.

I rubbed my forehead, suddenly feeling awful.

"God, I wasn't really thinking straight." I murmured.

"Yeah, no kidding."

"I'll go and apologize today." I said.

I had been so focused on keeping Damon alive I hadn't really thought about how my leaving would affect everyone else.

"And Damon, jeez Damon was a mess." Ric continued.

I sighed and poured out my coffee.

"I get it, I shouldn't have gone. I'm sorry." I replied.

Ric's gaze softened.

"I know you are, and I know you thought you had good reasons but…I care about a lot of the people who love you. There are lots of people here who need you Elena. Don't forget that ok?" He finished gruffly.

I nodded.

"Ok." I said simply.

He gave me a small smile.

"I'll let you get on with your morning…sorry to intrude like that." He said, turning to leave.

"Alaric." I called. He turned to look at me. "Thank you."

He nodded and walked out, grabbing his jacket from the table.

I steeled myself as I walked up the porch steps to my house. I let myself in and took a deep breath.

"Jenna, Jeremy?" I called.

"Elena?" There was a loud crash and Jeremy came hurtling down the stairs.

He ran into me and crushed me in a bear hug so tight I was struggling to breathe. He let me go and frowned at me.

"Where have you been Lena?" He asked.

I sighed.

"I'm so sorry, Jer. I shouldn't have left like that." I murmured.

"Yeah, you're right, you shouldn't. Do you have any idea how worried we were?"

I looked down.

"I'm sorry."

He gave me an appraisingly look and then grinned.

"I'll forgive you. As long as you plan on sticking around for a while." He finally said.

I nodded, relieved.

"Where's Jenna?" I asked.

"She'll be back later. She is going to be so mad at you!" He grinned.

I sighed and headed up to my room.

"I missed you Jer." I called.

I walked into my room and flopped on my bed. For once it looked like things were going to turn out all right. Jenna would probably try to ground me but technically I lived at the boarding house so there wasn't really much she could do.

The reasons that I had left were still there but I knew that Damon and I would work through them together. Running away wasn't going to solve anything.

There was a soft tap on the window and I sat up, startled. My face melted into a smile when I saw Damon. I jumped off the bed and let him in.

"Hey sweet pea. How did it go with Jeremy?" He asked, ruffling my hair and collapsing onto my bed. He grabbed my teddy bear and started fiddling with its arms.

"Why are you so obsessed with my bear?" I laughed.

He rolled his eyes.

I sat on the end of the bed and yanked his boots off, grimacing as some dirt fell onto my duvet. I mock glared at him.

"In answer to your question, it went ok. He forgave me way quicker than I expected." I said.

He looked at me steadily.

"You know _I'm_ still furious with you." he said, his voice surprisingly cold.

I shivered, I knew Damon would never hurt me, but it reminded me what he was capable of.

"I'm sorry." I whispered, for what felt like the hundredth time today.

He sat up.

"You can't just take off like that! I mean what were you planning on doing with your life?"

I shrugged, I hadn't really thought very far ahead.

"I don't know." I said quietly.

"And your reasons were completely irrational. I'm much more likely to stay alive with you around anyway."

I stayed quiet as he continued his rant; he needed to say it.

He paused and looked at me, his anger suddenly replaced by hurt.

"Were you really going to just leave and never come back? Without even a goodbye? You were just going to cut us all out of your life and never see any of us again." His voice quivered slightly but he covered it.

A tear slipped down my cheek at the thought of a life without them.

We stared at each other in silence before he looked away and rubbed his head in exasperation.

"And the worst thing is, you could have gotten hurt Elena. You could have gotten into a car accident, you could have been mugged…or worse." He shuddered as genuine fear crossed his face.

He masked it and lent back against the headboard.

"It was completely irresponsible." He stated, staring at the ceiling.

I lay on my side next to him and kissed his cheek.

"I didn't think any of this out Damon. And I am so sorry, but the important thing is that I'm fine, and you're fine and we're together. And I'm never going to leave you again." I said softly.

He turned his head to look at me.

"I need you to be more careful with your life Elena." He murmured. "I can't lose you."

I pressed my lips softly against his.

"You'll never lose me." I whispered.

He tangled a hand in my hair and pulled my head back down to his, deepening the kiss. I sighed and parted my lips.

He rolled us over so he hovered above me, supported by his elbows.

He kissed down my neck and along my collarbone. He paused at my pulse point and then placed a gentle kiss on it before moving lower.

"I love you Damon." I murmured.

"And don't you forget it."


	19. Chapter 19

**Chapter 19**

_Six months later._

I gazed blearily eyed at the teacher at the front of the class. I couldn't remember the last time I had been this bored. Caroline groaned and laid her head down on her desk, I stifled a giggle. It was trigonometry class and it seemed particularly dull this morning.

In fact I was having a bad day altogether, I had overslept that morning and had left the house without eating breakfast. I had then found out that I had failed my history exam… Which I found quite ironic seeing as I spent my days hanging out with characters from history books.

I had woken up in a bad mood anyway because Damon had been away the night before; he'd had to stock up his blood supply. I was always cranky when I didn't get to spend the night with him.

Overall this was a sucky day.

"Miss Gilbert?"

"Earth to Elena."

I looked up to find the whole class staring at me. Great.

"What?" I asked quickly.

"The answer?" the teacher, Mr. Hawthorne was watching me with raised eyebrows.

I groaned. I didn't even know what the question was, let alone the answer.

"I don't know." I admitted quietly.

"Miss Gilbert, maybe you could try paying attention in class instead of napping. You might actually learn something."

I rolled my eyes and pretended to be concentrating on something in my book. Nothing I was going to learn in this class would ever be useful in my real life.

I pulled out her blackberry and held it under the desk, careful not to let anyone see it.

**Having the worst day, wuu2?**

I texted Damon, a small smile playing at my lips at the thought of seeing him, I sighed when I got no answer; he probably wasn't home yet.

I put my head down on my desk and closed my eyes. This was going to be a long day. I drifted into a mixture of Damon related flashbacks and fantasies and blushed.

There was a knock on the door but I didn't look up. It was probably just one of the football boys showing up late.

"Elena Gilbert needs to come with me." A very familiar voice said.

I snapped my head up and my face broke into a smile at the sight of Damon standing in the doorway. His hair was rumpled and his eyes were dancing, he looked positively irresistible. My heart lurched.

"Is there a problem?" Mr. Hawthorne asked stiffly, taking in Damon's appearance disapprovingly.

"Yes, it's an emergency." Damon replied firmly.

The teacher sighed and shrugged.

"You're excused Elena." He finally said.

I jumped up and grabbed my bag, shoving my books into it haphazardly; I snatched my jacket and practically ran out of the class. Caroline gave me a knowing look.

As soon as the door had closed behind us, Damon slung his arm around my neck and pulled me close to him, placing a kiss on the top of my head.

"Hi kitten." He whispered.

I grinned and reached up, pressing my lips to his. As always, my stomach flip-flopped at the contact.

I pulled away and eyed him cheekily.

"You know I could get in trouble for this. Teachers don't take kindly to boyfriends springing students from school in the middle of class."

He chuckled and we started walking down the hallway, heading for the exit.

"Do you really think I would be that irresponsible Elena? Really, I'm hurt! ...As far as the school is concerned your family pet is sick."

I laughed.

"And what type of pet do I have, might I ask?"

"A bunny." Damon replied shortly.

I stared at him.

"A bunny? Let me guess, it's sick because a vampire tried to eat it?"

"Something along those lines." He said, waving a hand airily.

I smiled and snuggled into his chest as we walked.

"I missed you." I murmured.

"Who wouldn't." he retorted.

I rolled my eyes.

"What, you didn't miss me?" I asked, pouting.

He brushed his thumb across my lips.

"Who wouldn't." he replied softly.

I smiled.

"You think you're pretty smooth don't you." I teased.

We reached his car and he opened the passenger door for me.

"Honey, you and I both know that I am _very _smooth. There is no point in fighting it." He said cockily.

I laughed as he got into the car and set off down the road, going the opposite way to home.

"Where are we going?" I asked, curiosity taking over as I studied his smug features.

He didn't reply, but his lips twitched, fighting a smile.

"Damon Salvatore, what _are_ you up to?"

"Wouldn't you like to know!" He chuckled.

I mock scowled at him.

"You can be very stubborn sometimes, you know that?"

"Look at the pot calling the kettle black." He said incredulously.

I rolled my eyes. I wasn't going to get any answers out of him. I curled my feet under me and lent back in the seat, watching the scenery pass by. Damon glanced at me and smiled.

About twenty minutes later we pulled onto a small driveway, twisting through the trees. Eventually he parked and got out. I looked around, wondering what we were doing stopping in the middle of nowhere.

I climbed out after him and walked around to the trunk to see him hoisting out a heavy looking basket. I raised my eyebrows.

"This is all very mysterious." I observed.

He winked at me, slinging the basket over his arm and reaching for me with the other.

I fit perfectly under his arm as we walked.

"So why were you having '_the worst day'_?" He asked.

I sighed.

"I overslept and missed breakfast, then I failed an exam and my history teacher gave me this big lecture about learning to appreciate events from before my time…"

Damon snorted.

"That's ironic." He mused.

"That's what I said! But I couldn't exactly tell him that my boyfriend actually fought in the confederacy…he would have had me committed."

He laughed.

"You know I could just compel all your teachers to give you an A…"

"Tempting, but no. I don't want to cheat." I sighed.

He kissed my cheek unexpectedly.

"Good, I haven't corrupted you completely." He murmured.

I looked at him questioningly.

"Sometimes I worry about what kind of an influence I am on you." He admitted.

I stopped walking and looked him dead in the eye.

"Damon, don't say things like that ok? The only thing you influence me to do is follow my heart. Besides I'm just as much of an influence on you as you are on me. When was the last time you killed someone?"

He watched me appraisingly as I made my speech.

"Point made." He said eventually.

I smiled and wrapped my arms around his torso; we carried on walking through the trees.

"Now will you tell me where we're going?" I asked.

At that moment the trees thinned, revealing an enormous sparkling lake. It was surrounded by soft grass, thick with buttercups. It was beautiful. I gasped at the sight; it was truly breathtaking.

"Here." He whispered.

I gazed around us and he smiled at my reaction. He led me closer to the water and stopped on a particularly soft patch of grass. He set down the basket and opened it, pulling out a picnic blanket. He spread it out on the ground and proceeded to pull out various delicious looking foods from the basket. I stared at him in wonder.

"This is amazing Damon." I said softly.

"I figured you could use a break from everything." He murmured.

I knelt down on the blanket, kicking off my shoes. He handed me a bowl of chocolate covered strawberries, my favorites.

"How are you so wonderful?" I asked as I tucked in, my stomach growling with hunger.

He chuckled.

"Do you really want me to answer that?"

I smiled. He stole one of the strawberries and lay back, staring at the clear blue sky.

"I only bring really special people here." He said quietly.

I stopped eating and lay on my stomach next to him, gazing at his flawless face.

"Who else have you brought here?" I asked curiously.

He turned to smile at me.

"Just you."

I didn't say it but I knew he could see how much that meant to me.

I kissed him softly, his lips tasted like chocolate. He brushed his fingers through my hair. I finally broke away to breathe and he traced his fingers across the planes of my face.

"I love you Elena." He whispered.

I melted under his gaze.

"I love you too, Damon. And don't ever doubt that, ok?" I murmured quietly.

He nodded.

I lent down to kiss him again but he shifted, sitting up.

"Carry on like that and we will forget all about the food. The fact that you haven't eaten breakfast is worrying me, we can't have you wasting away." He said, loading a plate full of delicacies.

"Damon Salvatore postponing sex. I never thought I'd see the day."

He smirked and handed me the plate.

"Sex with someone who's emaciated is no fun." He teased.

I smacked his arm.

We ate and talked and laughed. I loved this side of our relationship. The way we could be best friends and just have fun, he made me forget every worry I ever had. He teased me and poked me and made fun of me and I retaliated with equal spirit.

When we had eaten all we could, we lay on our backs and gazed up at the sky, counting airplanes and naming types of birds. When I got bored of that, I climbed on top of him and locked my lips to his. He let me take the lead, and I kept it slow and gentle.

Things inevitably progressed and soon clothes were being shed. We made love tenderly, never breaking eye contact. It was beautiful and perfect and as the sun began to set I knew that this would be a day I would remember forever. I could see in his eyes that he was thinking the same.

We went home and made love again. As I drifted to sleep in his arms I was content in the knowledge that we had an eternity to do just this. He was mine for forever as I was his.

"Goodnight Damon."

He brushed his lips against my temple.

"Goodnight my sweet girl."

_The End._

* * *

**I know a lot of you will be mad at me for ending this story. I just felt that Elena had been through so much she deserved a happy ending right about now! I hope you won't be too disappointed :\ **

**Also don't forget to check out my new story: Bring Me Back To Life.**

**3 3 3 3**


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